IEP Lunch Debate with Klaus Scharioth: “Current Questions of European Policy”
State Secretary in the Federal Foreign Office Dr. Klaus Scharioth emphasised that the negative results of the referenda in France and the Netherlands may be a setback for the ratification of the European Constitution but do not mean the end of the European integration process. The most pressing task for now is analysing the multi-layered reasons for the rejection of the constitution and avoiding any “cacophony” between the national governments. Like the majority of EU member states, the German federal government is determined to continue the ratification process on the European constitutional treaty, especially since the arguments of the “no”-voters were directed less against the constitutional text and more against domestic and European political problems. Scharioth also considers important a stronger communication of the “big themes” of European integration to the public. The significance of the EU in overcoming the European partition and securing peace on the continent are still too little appreciated.
Every member state must now have the opportunity to ratify the treaty, explained State Secretary Scharioth. In addition, those states that have already ratified the treaty, many with overwhelming majorities, cannot simply be passed over. He called for maintaining the constitutional text (TCE), since new negotiations would not lead to better results and a premature dismemberment of the treaty text would only produce minimal results and endanger the fundamental reforms of the TCE (e.g. stronger democratisation, transparency, fundamental rights charter, European foreign minister). Reaching a unified position among the EU member states on the additional joint approaches to the constitutional treaty are now critical.
Also desirable is an agreement by the European Council in the next week on a financial perspective starting in 2007. The federal government is prepared to move closer to other member states in the question of the one percent limit of GNP own resources, but there must also be a readiness to compromise on the part of other states as well. In addition, considering the “dramatically” changed relative standards of living of some member states, the British special rebate is no longer justified. Not only Great Britain, whose standard of living statistics have climbed considerably, but also net-recipient countries with high economic growth in the last decade, such as Spain, must now be prepared to allow a re-evaluation of resource allocation criteria.
With regard to the enlargement policy of the EU, State Secretary Scharioth regretted that the enormous gains in political stability from the last round of enlargement have been overshadowed by the fears and concerns of the population, although the membership of the new EU states has lead to a more dynamic market for German exports. In the last year alone, the percentage of German exports of goods to the new member states climbed to 8.5. The federal government furthermore rejects postponing the accession of Bulgaria and Romania and supports Croatian membership upon fulfilment of the necessary criteria. In addition, an accession perspective is indispensable to supporting the reform process in Turkey, although negotiations do not mean automatic accession. A stabilisation of the Balkans is also unthinkable without an accession perspective.
In conclusion, the state secretary emphasised that the established prejudices of German EU policy must be disposed of. Today, the Federal Foreign Office and the Federal Ministry of Finance, in close cooperation with the Federal Chancellery, have achieved success in making European political coordination more efficient. Through consultations in the State Secretary Committee, this has led to the overcoming of previous weaknesses of Germany in the implementation of EU directives so that Germany today lies relatively far ahead on the implementation scale.
By: Gesa Kuhle
